DESCRIPTION (provided by candidate): [unreadable] GPS2 has been recently reported as an intrinsic component of one of the major repressor complexes in transcription, the NCoR/SMRT nuclear receptor corepressor complex. While GPS2 specific functions are mostly unknown, our preliminary data show that GPS2 is required to prevent constitutive activation of several transcription factors, including AP1 and NFkB. Because GPS2 was originally isolated in yeast as a suppressor of constitutive G-protein signaling, and it was shown to inhibit JNK activity in response to TNFa, our hypothesis is that GPS2 and a newly identified GPS2-interacting protein, KIAA1787, are endogenous inhibitors required for preventing undesired activation of the JNK and IKK kinase pathways and therefore for keeping under tight control large pro-inflammatory transcription programs that are known to be activated during obesity and consequent development of insulin resistance. We propose 3 specific aims: i) to define GPS2-dependent gene networks in adipocytes with a combination of microarray and ChlP-chip techniques; ii) to investigate the molecular mechanism of GPS2 and KIAA1787 functions in the regulation of the NFkB and AP1 pathways; iii) to generate animal models to address in vivo GPS2 and KIAA1787 relevance for the development of insulin resistance. The candidate, Dr. Perissi, has a strong background in molecular biology and has previously investigated the role of other transcriptional coregulators of nuclear receptors, NFkB and AP1 transcription factors and with this proposal aims to combine the basic research that has characterized her previous experience with a translational approach to investigate the role of these novel factors in insulin resistance and type II diabetes. The Sponsor, Dr. M.G. Rosenfeld, and the co-Sponsor, Dr. J.OIefsky, will overlook the experiments design and the development of the project and will provide the scientific support for the candidate to achieve independence in the field of diabetes and inflammation research. Type II diabetes is a complex metabolic disorder that affects between 6% and 20% of the population in the Western world and its incidence is expected to increase exponentially, especially among young people. Obesity, which is affecting almost a third of the American population, is now tightly link to the development of insulin resistance and its progression into diabetes. A better characterization of the molecular basis of how the inflammatory pathways are physiologically regulated is critical to develop novel therapeutic approaches. [unreadable] [unreadable]